An Unlikely Friend
by RosesAndStripes
Summary: While sulking over the outcome of an argument with her family, Renesmee finds a friend in an unexpected creature. But perhaps this little friendship is exactly what the youngest Cullen needs. Nessie looks like a 5 or 6 year old in this story.


Renesmee Cullen sat on the porch of her grandparents' house, bored to tears and lonely. Her family was out hunting leaving the young hybrid with her Uncle Seth. Seth, the poor, exhausted werewolf was currently running around the mansion-sized house and frantically searching for the little girl. Nessie had thrown a fit and had disappeared into the depths of the house, and taking a page from her Uncle Jasper's book, she spread her scent in all directions in order to confuse her _opponent._ She ran through every room in the house, her Uncle stumbling blindly behind her, attempting to follow her scent.

"Nessie!" He called, hoping to get a response. "I know you're upset, but hiding isn't a way to solve your problems." Silence met his calls, making the poor werewolf sigh in defeat. He decided to let her fume about her issues for a while, and then continue the search. Seth plopped down onto the couch in the living room, sighing as he sunk into the big, puffy cushions. _Oh well, _he thought, _with a temper to rival her parents, it's a wonder how the others manage. _

Meanwhile, the young hybrid rose from her sitting position and began walking down the long driveway that led to the Cullen Mansion. She didn't know what she was doing, or what she was looking for, only that she had to get away from that house. As she walked, she went over the argument that she and her parents had had prior to them leaving on their hunt. It had started last night around eight o'clock, beginning with an innocent question. _All I wanted was to play with him, that's it. _Nessie thought.

_**Flashback – the previous night**_

Last night her and her parents had been visiting her Grandparents' house when a little boy around the age of six had wandered up to the lawn. Alice having seen this, along with Edward, had rushed out to bring the freezing boy in. His name was Luke, and he had run away from home. He had refused to go into detail, but Edward said it had something to do with his mother's new love interest.

Renesmee had watched from the top of the staircase as Luke sat in the corner by himself while the adults talked things over. Her father had told her to stay in her room while he was here, but this was the first time she had been around another person her age, or that looked her age. So naturally, the little hybrid had done the obvious, she snuck downstairs by climbing down the vines that hung below her window.

Once she was successfully on the ground she snuck around to the back door, and motioning with her hand, called the boy over to her. Glad to get away from the arguing adults, the little boy had crept away and ran to talk to the little girl.

"Hi, I'm Nessie!" she spoke, her enthusiasm contagious.

"I'm Luke!" He replied, flashing a toothy smile. With that the duo began to run around in the grass, laughing and playing like life-long friends. The adults, whom had been too involved in their own argument to notice, finally realized that the little boy was absent from the room. Worried, they began listening for his heartbeat, along with Renesmee's. Emmett was the first one to pinpoint where the two were, leading the family to the window. From there they watched as Nessie and Luke played tag, Nessie trying to run at a human speed and tag him without hurting him, and Luke oblivious to the fact that he was playing tag with a half-vampire child.

The other's sensing the supposed danger of the situation, raced into action, running outside and consequently ending the little game.

"Nessie! I thought I told you to stay upstairs in your room." Her father scolded as he grabbed her hand. Renesmee tried to argue, but was silenced by the halfhearted glare her father gave her. Instead, she turned to the boy, who was decidedly going to be dropped off at his house by Carlisle, and whispered the last words she would tell her first normal friend.

"Bye Luke," he whispered his own farewell, not knowing that the adult vampires easily heard it. He was placed into the backseat of Carlisle's Mercedes, and Renesmee could only watch as he waved goodbye. Once he was out of sight, she found herself once again being led into the house by her angry father.

"Renesmee Carlie Cullen, what were you thinking, you deliberately disobeyed me, and what's worse, you could have very easily hurt that little boy!" her daddy scolded, not really yelling, but not just speaking either.

"I wasn't going to hurt him, I was perfectly in control. I just wanted to play with him!" Nessie shot back, tears pricking her eyes at the accusation. Bella stepped in then, noticing how the situation was escalating.

"Honey, we know that you wanted to play, but it's too dangerous for you to be around humans-,"

"No, you _think _it's too dangerous, but everything was going fine. I was going slow, and I controlled my strength, we were having fun!" Her voice remained strong though tears streamed steadily down her porcelain face. Next it was Rosalie's turn to attempt to placate the upset little hybrid.

"Sweetheart, you don't understand-,"

"No you all don't understand. He was my friend!" She yelled, then being unable to stand there and face her family, the crying little girl bolted out of her father's grip and raced up to her room. Once there she locked the door and cried herself to sleep, ignoring the concerned voices that occasionally floated into her room through the door. In the morning, when her parents had come to get her ready to go on their hunt (she was supposed to go with them), she refused to open the door, so her parents called to see if Seth would watch her.

End Flashback

Tears of frustration sprung from the youngest Cullen's eyes as she recalled the argument. She knew she might have overreacted, but it wasn't fair. All she wanted to do was feel normal for once in her life. She sighed as she lay down on a fallen log about halfway down the driveway, resting her head against the moss-covered bark. With her eyes closed, her other senses became more sensitive. She could smell the blood of different animals, and with her ears she could hear what they were doing. A doe and her fawn grazing, a raccoon eating fruits off of a tree, a hawk praying on some small animal. But then there was something else. Renesmee couldn't place the scent, it was something new to her, and it was close. Close enough, that when she opened her eyes, she could see it's little ears over the top of the long grass surrounding her. The hybrid bolted up, her eyes locked on those of the mysterious animal, although it wasn't so mysterious now that she could see it.

Matted red/orange fur, a white muzzle, big expressive eyes, large black-tipped ears, and a puffy white tipped tail.

"A fox?" she said to herself as she gazed into its curious eyes. It was not big, about the size of a puppy, and it looked young, probably a few months old, if even. Nessie didn't know what to do, she knew she shouldn't touch it, but it was so cute and it looked like it was all alone. So, throwing caution to the wind, she carefully sunk down onto her knees in front of the small pup, thrilled to see that it didn't seem scared. Then she sunk down until she was lying on her belly, her face mere inches from that of the red fox pup. Cautiously, she moved her hand, in plain view, towards the fox, laying it gently on top of its head.

She gasped as it moved to lick her face, before peels of bell-like laughter escaped her. The fox yipped excitedly, its tongue hanging out of its mouth like a dog. Nessie sat up, her legs folded Indian style, as the pup crawled into her lap, still yipping happily. Renesmee stroked his red fur, noting that it was much softer then it looked, all the while thinking of what to call her new friend.

"Hmm, what about Indy, do you like that?" she asked, smiling as Indy jumped up to lick her chin. "Will you be my friend Indy, my family scared the last one off." The pup looked up at her, eyes shining as she lifted him up. Deciding that she wasn't as angry anymore, she began making her way back to the house. Once they reached the porch, Renesmee suddenly realized that her Uncle Seth was still here, and probably worried about her. Guilt was threatening to rise in her, but her mind was too busy trying to figure out how to get Indy inside to process it. She stopped and listened to see if she could determine where he was, and decided that he was on the couch. She put her index finger to her lips, telling her new friend to stay quiet, and quickly snuck into the house. When she reached the living room, Nessie tiptoed over to the couch and peered over the back, happy to see that her Uncle Seth was fast asleep. This meant that she had a while before she had to be really sneaky.

Walking up the stairs normally, she talked to the fox pup, showing him everything and anything in the house that she thought was neat. When she reached her room, she set Indy on the ground and locked the door, making sure to be quiet as she did so.

"There, now we can do whatever we want." She smiled as she sat on her bed. Curiously, she patted her leg and called out to her new friend. "Come on Indy, jump!" She laughed as the pup came trotting over to her, yipping quietly, before he launched himself up onto the bed besides her. For what seemed like hours she talked, telling her furry companion everything, every secret and regret she'd ever had, every favorite moment. Because as her Aunt Alice said to her Mama, there are no secrets between best friends.

"-and so that's how Uncle Jasper fell out of the third story window." She finished with a nod of her head. Indy, who had seemed to be listening, barked twice before nudging her arm. "Did you just growl at me?" Nessie asked, listening again for the strange noise. She heard it, but Indy didn't move his mouth, he just nudged her again. That's when she realized what it was.

"Oh! You must be hungry. I'll just go get something from the kitchen!" She bounced up from her spot, and ran to the door, flipping the lock. "Now you stay here Indy. Okay?" He just cocked his head to the side, staring at her with big amber eyes. Renesmee smiled before she bolted down the staircase towards the kitchen.

"But what do foxes eat?" she asked herself as she stared at the contents of the kitchen. She carefully climbed up onto the countertop and began to look through the cabinets. About five minutes through, she made a wonderful discovery. "Dog food! Wait… why do we have dog food, we don't have a dog. And I'm the only one who eats?" she shook her head and rolled her eyes as she opened the can and scooped it's contents into a little bowl. She grabbed a fork too, incase she wanted to feed him herself before she started making her way out of the kitchen.

"What'cha got there Ness?" asked her Uncle Seth as he rubbed his eyes. The hybrids eyes widened as she tried to think up an excuse.

"I, ah, I made myself some lunch!" She spoke, smiling at her perfect lie. But her smile dimmed as she watched him inspect the dish.

"What kind of lunch?" he asked incredulously, his eyes not hiding his disgust.

"It's _my _kind of lunch, and I didn't ask your opinion about it. Plus, it's good, see." She said, and in a last attempt to satisfy him, she scooped up a bit on the fork and placed it in her mouth.

"Mmm, y-yummy." She mumbled as she tried not to gag. He only gave a disgusted look before leaving the room. She waited until she heard the TV on before she ran to the trashcan.

"Ugh, gross," She whispered to herself as she spit it out, "I think I'd rather lick a hobo." Her nose scrunched up at the thought, but then she remembered her hungry friend in her room. Getting up off of her knees, she hesitantly looked around the corner, and seeing no sign of her uncle, she dashed up the stairs as fast as she could. Upon reaching the entrance to her room, she pushed on the door slightly to see that it was already open, and came to the conclusion that she had forgotten to close it.

"Uh oh, Indy. Here boy, I got food for you. I don't think dog food tastes very good, but you're a canine, so it shouldn't taste like dirt to you," _At least I don't think it will… I should make Jake eat it. No, I'll trick Leah into eating it! _The young Cullen laughed at her plan before panicking slightly upon learning that her little fox friend was not in the room. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath through her nose. Once she found his scent, she scrambled out of her door, following it down to the main floor. When she reached the bottom of the staircase she froze. Her Uncle Seth was looking out the main window while talking on the phone, but that's not what made her freeze. Standing on the couch was Indy, his furry face buried into the bowl of forgotten kettle corn. Her eyes widened as she watched her the oblivious werewolf hang up the phone, and begin to turn around.

"No!" she yelled as she catapulted herself onto her unsuspecting Uncle. He gave a small yell of surprise as she covered his eyes with her hands.

"What's going on Nessie, what are you yelling about!" he asked, confused. Renesmee heaved a sigh of relief as she watched Indy scurry down the hall, out of sight.

"Was that daddy on the phone, I want to talk to him," she lied, her voice strong and unwavering. Seth sighed, thinking that maybe Nessie was regretting her earlier argument with her parents. He hadn't been there, but Edward had said it was pretty bad.

"No that wasn't your dad, now c'mon, let go so I can watch my movie." He laughed, pulling her from his shoulders. She gladly climbed down and began walking towards where she saw her friend disappear. She looked back to tell her Uncle she was sorry for jumping him, only to change her mind as she watched him eat a handful of the same popcorn Indy had been eating. _Ugh, that's almost as bad as the dog food. At least he doesn't know. _She giggled from behind her hands as she ran off to find her little fox.

_**…An hour and a half later…**_

The hybrid was close to giving up completely. She had searched everywhere for her furry friend, and yet she couldn't find him anywhere. About a half an hour ago, her Uncle Seth told her that the others were on their way home, and she was worried that she wouldn't find him, or that one of her family members would. _What if one of them eats him! I can't let him get eaten, what kind of friend would I be then! _She was almost to the point of crying when she heard the door open, and several startled screams and yells from downstairs. _Indy!_ Bolting from her room she threw herself over the railing of the stairs, landing gracefully on her feet in front of the cornered and growling fox pup.

"Indy! I thought I'd never find you!" She yelled as she scooped him up in her arms, cradling him like a child. His growling ceased immediately as he began to bark and lick her chin. She giggled as she hugged him, glad that she had gotten to him first.

"Renesmee Carlie Cullen, put that, that _thing _down this instance!" Her mother said, a slight tremor in her voice. Nessie chose this moment to look up, suddenly remembering that she had an audience. Upon processing her mother's words, she began to shake her head furiously.

"No, I can't, he's my friend." She defended, her eyes set on her families stunned faces.

"Renesmee, that's a wild animal, not your friend. You can't keep him, he's dangerous!" Her father said, absolutely aghast at his daughter's behavior. First her fit about the boy, and now this.

"Exactly, we're the same!"

"What do you mean, 'we're the same,' Nessie, you're nothing like that thing." Her Aunt Rosalie replied.

"Yes we are, both of us just want to be accepted but no one will give us the chance to prove ourselves because the first thing people think when they see us is that we're dangerous! No one understands, and no one is willing to give us the chance to prove that we're not as bad as everyone thinks, that we're stronger then they make us out to be!" she cried out. There were no tears on her face, and her voice was strong as she told her family the reason she loved Indy. "I just want a friend, and since you don't trust me around humans, I went out and found one to test myself with. It'll be like practice. I can use Indy to help teach myself control, and I can have a friend at the same time. That way, when I get the chance to have a normal friend, you can all trust me. So please can I keep him, he'll die if I put him back in the wild!"

Bella looked down at her daughter's face. It showed nothing but determination, and Bella knew how much this little fox meant to her daughter.

"Edward?" she asked, leaving the final verdict up to him.

"Nessie, raising a pet is a lot of responsibility, are you sure you can handle that?" he asked. His daughter looked up at him, a smile slowly beginning to climb its way onto her face before she launched herself into her father's arms, fox and all.

"Yes, yes, yes! Thank you so much daddy! I promise I'll take good care of him, scouts honor," she vowed while making an X over her heart. Edward laughed at his daughter's enthusiasm, glad to see her smiling instead of crying like she was last night. Suddenly Seth's eyes widened before he burst out laughing.

"You, Ha! That was dog foodwasn't it, you actually ate _dog food!_" he laughed. Her family shot the young hybrid curious and disgusted looks while she smirked at her Uncle.

"Yes, but I'm not the one who ate the popcorn that Indy had been eating behind your back." She shot back, looking smug. Seth paled before turning a slight shade of green and running out of the room, muttering about toothpaste and mouthwash as he went. Edward watched in content as the fox barked while it followed his daughter up the stairs. _I guess it was to be expected, _he thought, _that such a unique little girl would have such an unlikely friend. _


End file.
